Azad Maidan (formerly known as ''Bombay Gymkhana Maidan'') is a triangular-shaped maidan (sports ground) in the city of

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. It is located on of land near the

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (officially Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Bombay station code: CSMT ( mainline)/ST (suburban)), is a historic railway terminus and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The terminus wa ...

station. It is a regular venue for inter-school cricket matches. The name ''Azad'' means "liberty" in Persian. The ground is known for its

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

pitches, for protest meetings, and for political rallies. The Bombay Gymkhana clubhouse was built in 1875, at the southern end of the maidan.

History

The vast expanses of land of the

Oval Maidan Oval Maidan is a large Grade I recreational ground situated in South Mumbai, India. It is so named because of its oval shape and is situated just south of Churchgate. It is a popular recreation ground, with the most popular sports played there ...

, Azad Maidan,

Cooperage Ground The Cooperage Football Ground is a football stadium located in Nariman Point, Mumbai, India. It is currently home to multiple Mumbai Football League clubs. The Western India Football Association has operated from the Cooperage Ground since 19 ...

and

Cross Maidan Cross Maidan (formerly ''Parade Ground'' ) is a vast expanse of land in Mumbai. The term maidan means "playing ground" in Marathi. The ground measures 23,000 m². The name "Cross" is derived for the old stone Cross (crucifix) built when ...

until the early 20th century formed the area known as Esplanade.

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

addressed the largest ever political meeting at Azad Maidan in December 1931. Part of the site will be closed in 2015 to allow for construction of a station on Line 3 of the Mumbai Metro.

Cricket

The ground hosts twenty-two cricket pitches. The cricket pitches at the ground have produced many international cricketers. On 20 November 2013,

Prithvi Shaw Prithvi Pankaj Shaw (born 9 November 1999) is an Indian international cricketer who played for the Indian cricket team in all formats. He currently plays for Mumbai in domestic cricket and Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League. He debute ...

created history with 546 runs and in 1987

Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (; ; born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who captained the Indian national team. He is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the all time highest run-sco ...

and Vinod Kambli shared a huge 664 run record partnership during a ''Harris Shield'' school match at Azad Maidan. Azad Maidan plays host to a number of cricket matches throughout the year, including Inter-School and Club matches.

References

Maidans in India Year of establishment missing {{India-sports-venue-stub

History

Cricket

See also

References